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Options for solar-powered welcome sign

FROM R-J READERS

To the editor:

Powering the Welcome to Las Vegas sign with solar energy is a good idea. The placement of solar panels on the island where the sign is located may not be (“Commissioners concerned about Welcome to Las Vegas solar ‘trees,’ ” Wednesday Review-Journal).

Visual pollution can distract from the unique beauty of this sign. Clark County needs to take some time to plan how to implement a solar-powered sign in a manner that is functional and displays Southern Nevada’s commitment to solar energy.

Coordination among more stakeholders would be a good start. Solar power doesn’t have to be located on-site. Clark County could get space across the street near Town Square and place panels where visitors can tour the solar array as they shop. Two objectives could be realized, highlighting solar power and powering the sign, as well as allaying any concerns over visual pollution.

Through an agreement with NV Energy, the county could allow for the transmission of the energy into the grid. I’m sure NV Energy would like the credit as well.

TERRY VAETH

LAS VEGAS

Quality teachers

To the editor:

Tuesday’s editorial, “Quality teachers,” brought back some frustrating memories from the time I retired from Nellis Air Force Base in 1978.

As an Air Force construction engineer, I had numerous contacts with many highly educated fellow retirees with advanced degrees in engineering, chemistry, physics, accounting and a multitude of other disciplines. The Clark County School District could’ve put us to good use as teachers. But thanks to the teachers union and other protectionist barriers initiated by special interest groups, these highly qualified retirees gave up on becoming teachers and instead entered a more hospitable career field.

JOHN J. ERLANGER

LAS VEGAS

Enforcement, not reform

To the editor:

The current immigration reform bill being pushed by the Democrats and the U.S. Senate’s “Gang of Eight” is totally unnecessary and, if passed, will further cripple our economy by adding more than 11 million new workers into the already-crowded job market. We have close to 20 million Americans presently unemployed or underemployed.

Current law allows a number of immigrants to come here legally without making them a burden on our economy. Giving amnesty to those who broke the law is a slap in the face to those who are doing it the proper way and wish to become citizens, which is not easy.

Most of those here illegally don’t really want to be Americans. They want to make as much money here as they can, send most of it back home and then return to their country of origin when the well runs dry here. If a guest knocks on my front door, I welcome him into my house. When someone breaks into my house, raids my pantry or threatens my family’s well-being, they’ll be treated as an invader and dealt with as such.

What we need is enforcement of our current laws, along with the completion of the fence along our southern border. There are many sections where you can walk or swim right across, with no one there to stop you. Reform is code for recruiting future voters.

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